My kids get more enjoyment from catching 5 or 10 "goofy" fish like sole or perch then they do from waiting 2 hours to catch 1 salmon.

So ....

When I take them down to the Columbia with me, I want to give them a chance to mess around with something small and plentiful. What else is in the Columbia this time of year besides springers and sturgeon? We'll be bonking them for dinner, so it needs to be decent eating. Perch? Bass? Sculpin?

I would wait for the shad fishery.

You could also time the trip to coincide with the opening of trout season. They plant quite a few lakes around there.

I would suggest game boys and lots fo snacks. This time of the yeat not much alse to target that would have more action than salmon.

If you try smaller hooks and pieces of sardine or worm, maybe with a little spin n glo, you can catch chubs and squawfish. Not much to eat, but maybe some more action. We're always getting them on the kwikies. I used to catch a mess of these when I was a kid, haven't focused on them since.